Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to tamper evident systems for containers wherein the system must be altered in some manner to obtain access to the container contents, the alteration being evidence that the container has been opened. The present system is particularly suited for a tamper evident construction, wherein an immediate visual indicator is provided through separation of a portion of a closure upon actuation of the tamper evident system.
Description of Related Art
A variety of tamper evident container closures have been developed. U.S. Pat. No. 4,487,324 and No. 4,941,592 disclose closures which incorporate a locking band or tab that is attached to either the lid or body of the closure with a plurality of frangible webs so as to initially retain the closure lid to the body in the closed position. To initially open the closure, the user must break the frangible webs by pushing or pulling on a tab or band.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,201,440 describes a container closure which includes a body for mounting on a container. The tamper indicating member includes a pull tab which can be pulled to completely sever frangible webs connecting the tamper indicating member to a lid and an anchor. The lid can then be opened while providing evidence of tampering with the closure.
Even in view of the above disclosures, it is desirable to provide an improved tamper evident closure which can be readily fabricated and which, prior to the initial opening, can provide an aesthetic appearance, yet provide ready visual indication of the tamper evident status. It would also be advantageous for a tamper evident closure to be easily molded as one piece, including lid, body and tamper-indicating portion, and to be easily deployed after molding to a tamper indicating ready condition for eventual delivery to a user.
Specifically, it would be an improvement if the closure could be initially opened relatively easily by the user. After such an improved closure has been initially opened, the closure should furnish a very clear visible indication that it has been previously opened. It would also be desirable to provide an improved tamper evident closure design that includes a tamper indicator which, when altered during opening of the closure, would not result in the creation of a separate scrap piece that would require separate disposal.